Passionate about IP! Since June 2003 the IPKat weblog has covered copyright, patent, trade mark, info-tech and privacy/confidentiality issues from a mainly UK and European perspective. The team is David Brophy, Birgit Clark, Merpel, Jeremy Phillips, Eleonora Rosati, Darren Smyth, Annsley Merelle Ward and Neil J. Wilkof. You're welcome to read, post comments and participate in our community. You can email the Kats here

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Tuesday, 15 January 2013

The IPKat's attention has been drawn to Community Trade Mark E3307444. The mark in question consists of the number '2014', which no-one would ever imagine to be the appellation by which next year might just be known. Applied for in 2003 and registered in 2005, this mark is owned by none other than the Comité International Olympique of Château de Vidy, Lausanne.

For most good folk, Olympic years are those which are exactly divisible by four, which means that the next 'real' Olympics don't happen till 2016. However, for the pleasure of winter sports followers and the relief of unbearable impatience on the part of sponsors, there are Winter Olympics too, in even-numbered years that can't be divided exactly by four. The next Winter Olympics will be held in Sochi in -- you guessed it -- 2014.

A quick peep at the specification for Community trade mark 2014 reveals that the Comité International Olympique (IOC) must have some grand conceptions for its commercial exploitation, it being registered for every single Class from 01 to 45. Not easily shocked or surprised by anything that the Olympians at the IOC do in the name of sport, this Kat has not yet lost his capacity to be amused. Among the following goods and services for which 2014 has been monopolised -- subject to any defence available under the Community Trade Mark Regulation -- are the following:

Class 34: tobacco; smokers' requisites [not the best products to be identified with the healthy Olympic ethos, surely?].

The IPKat doesn't feel he can safely use 2014 in the course of trade, so he has decided to call it "2013+1". Merpel isn't sure that this will work. The first three digits of 2014 also begin "2013" and, as is well known in decisions of the General Court and the Boards of Appeal of OHIM, consumers are likely to pay more attention to the beginning of a mark than to its end unless there's a good reason why they won't ...

Will next year's Commonwealth Games be in jeopardy? are the organisers taking a risk by using '2014'?

A katpat to Tony Willoughby, who first drew this registration to the Kats' attention

8 comments:

This not an original happening. It happened befofe on 2004 in the football Euro in Portugal when UEFA registered several portuguese trademarks for the whole Nice Classification.Its time to move back to the basics!! What about the Applicant's "basic" interest in registering a TM and acquiring an Exclusive Right?